A Blue World Romance
by ANGSWIN
Summary: Can Jean-Eric find love with a fascinating younger woman - who just happens to be his lead diver?...This story is based on the characters, settings, and events from "Endless Ocean 2: Blue World" (Wii video game - North American version).
1. The Dream Team

4/7/17 - Update:  
This is a repost of an older work. I have now combined all three of the original separate short stories together into one multi-chapter fic. More may be added at a later date.

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 **The Dream Team**

Jean-Eric Louvier crossed his arms contentedly over his broad chest as he leaned back against the wheel of his older, but much loved, diving vessel – _The Reef Seeker_. He was an attractive older man with graying hair and a matching beard who just naturally felt at home on the water – especially in the South Pacific where his diving company was based. Just a few minutes ago, he had dropped the anchor so the boat wouldn't drift, and then proudly stood back to watch the _L & L Diving Service_ team suit up and prepare for their next dive. This was a scientific mission, not a salvage one – so all four of the divers would be going down together -instead of just in pairs like they normally did. As he watched them help each other don the usual diving equipment, along with the various bulky scientific instruments, he took a moment to marvel at how seamlessly this diverse group worked together. They didn't even have to ask each other what needed to be done. They already knew exactly what to do and they just handled it with a minimum amount of fuss – even while keeping up the constant friendly banter and good-natured jesting that they had all become used to since forming their team almost a year earlier. A small smile graced Jean-Eric's slightly grizzled face as he thought about how lucky he was to have each and every one of them on board.

First, there was the apple of his eye – his beautiful granddaughter, Oceana. Even though she was only 19, she had been with him the longest. He had raised her on his own and taught her how to live with the sea ever since her parents had died tragically in two separate accidents during the same year when she was just a young child (Her grandmother, his wife, had passed away several years before that). With her slight French accent, long lean frame, dark hair, and big expressive brown eyes, she was a constant physical reminder of her father, Jean-Eric's late son, Matthias - who had been lost in a diving accident. Oceana may have been young, but she was very dedicated and determined, with good instincts, and was already a master diver. Even though she was generous and thoughtful, she also had a good head for business and one day would inherit _L &L_ from him. He was so proud of the woman that she was becoming!

Standing next to her, and double checking her safety equipment for her, was GG (aka Gaston Gray). GG said that he had been born in California, but had traveled extensively all over the globe from a very young age, and that was why he had no traceable accent. The tall, muscular, dark-skinned man in his mid-30s had at first irritated Jean-Eric with his flamboyant style and over inflated ego. However, he soon realized that it was all really a cover to shield the kind-hearted man underneath all of the bluster after GG became a part of the team and showed his true worth. Now that Jean-Eric understood him better, he completely trusted the younger man – even though they had been competitors originally. Now, Jean-Eric even allowed him to pilot the _Reef Seeker_ on occasion and escort Oceana out on dives when he was unavailable to do so himself. Not only was GG an expert salvager, but he was also a quick problem solver, and very protective of his team. During their down time, he also kept everyone amused with outrageous and greatly exaggerated stories of his diving exploits.

Sitting in the stern of the boat, completing a final calibration on one of the instruments that they would be taking down with them, was the newest member of the team, Hayako Sakurai. She was an attractive Asian woman in her late 30s and was the most brilliant person that Jean-Eric had ever met. She could converse intelligently on any subject, spoke multiple languages, and held several doctorate degrees in everything from Marine Biology to Archeology. Her vast knowledge had come in handy so many times during her short six month stint with _L &L_ – most notably during their successful search for the legendary Pacifica treasure that had really put their company on the map. Unfortunately, she was also the curator of the Kyoto Aquarium, so she wasn't with them as much as he, and the rest of the team, would like for her to be. However, he tried to involve her with their work as much as possible – especially when it involved her areas of expertise.

Jean-Eric finally let his eyes settle on the other woman who was cheerfully chatting with GG and Oceana while pulling on her flippers. He felt his breath catch and his heartbeat speed up when Teagan Sanderson's sparkling blue eyes flicked up to meet his momentarily across the length of the boat. She then flashed him a sweet grin while she continued to explain to the others what kind of data that they were hoping to collect that day. Her wavy chestnut hair was pulled back in the casual pony tail that she usually wore while diving and she looked so … lovely. He smiled as he remembered that it had been almost a year ago now when he had interviewed the pretty and resourceful American for the additional diving help that he had desperately needed. Back then, it had been just him and Oceana. They had been in a serious bind because he personally couldn't dive anymore due to complications from decompression sickness some years earlier and Oceana couldn't handle everything on her own. Teagan was mainly a recreational diver at that time, but he hired her on the spot anyway due to her enthusiasm. However, it did not take long for her to show, beyond a doubt, her vast amount of skills and bravery. She had also proved to have an almost supernatural intuition when it came to the mysteries of the sea. She was now the lead diver for _L &L_ and the others were happy to follow her without question – especially after her instincts had been proven correct so many times during the Pacifica treasure adventures! She was also very popular with both their diving tour and salvage contracting clients. She was constantly being requested for by name – especially by their male clients. In fact, Oceana had mentioned several times how many of them had asked Teagan out for dates. Jean-Eric didn't think that she had accepted anyone, yet, though. He didn't know how he felt about that since obviously they weren't the only ones that were fascinated by her.

He sighed quietly to himself as he thought about how long he had been fighting his attraction for her. She was only 30 years old and he was almost twice her age. She deserved better than some old broken down water dog, so he had never acted on his feelings. He was sure that someone so young and lovely couldn't possibly return his affections and he didn't want to lose the camaraderie and comfortable working relationship that they had together. Therefore, he was determined to keep his distance in order not to scare her off. She certainly made it difficult, though, with her constant smiles, quiet talks (in her charming slight Southern drawl), light touches on his arm to get his attention, grazes of his hand with her own when she handed him something, and especially with the celebratory hugs that she always gave after a successful diving mission. He really enjoyed any and all attention that she chose to pay him, but knew that the effect that these actions had on him was all unintentional on her part. He could tell that she was just a naturally affectionate and kind person. However, being close to her drove him crazy, both physically and emotionally, and it was becoming harder to hide it. He would do whatever it took, though, because it was worth it to keep her in his life.

He shook his head and brought himself out of these bittersweet musings. He looked at his team again, saw that they were ready to go, and gave each of them a thumbs up sign as they tipped back, one at a time, into the water to begin their survey mission. He smiled again as he thought about how Oceana, GG, Hayako, and Teagan were more than just his team and his employees. They were all special to him in their own ways. They were his family - even if Oceana was the only one with an actual blood tie. This past year with their companionship and adventures had been simply amazing, the best he had experienced since he had lost Oceana's father. The grief and guilt from that time seemed easier to bear now and he felt younger and stronger than he had in a long time. Jean-Eric shook his head to clear his thoughts again and reached down to fiddle with the audio equipment. He then double checked his radio connection to the underwater team and proceeded to verbally guide them to the reef where they needed to collect their samples. It wasn't going to be a particularly difficult job today, per se, but it would require quite a bit of precision, skill, and teamwork. They were definitely up for that challenge, though! The _L & L Diving Services_ dream team was on the move!


	2. His Little Slice of Heaven

The female members of the _L & L Diving Services_ dream team were all laughing hysterically at GG's latest outrageous and highly improbable diving story – this one involving a faulty headset and wayward octopus tentacles – and even Jean-Eric snorted in amusement as he gently and expertly guided the _Reef Seeker_ parallel to the Nineball Island's well maintained dock. They were finally home. GG jumped out quickly to secure the boat and then chivalrously offered a hand to each of the ladies as they carefully stepped off onto the dock – each carrying an armful of equipment. He then turned back to gallantly offer a hand to Jean-Eric as well, who laughingly declined (he was going to stay on the boat for a while and make a few minor repairs), but instead filled up GG's arms with the box of samples that they had just collected per special request of one of their steady clients: the Pelago University satellite program on the mainland. GG huffed good-naturedly but carried the box up to the simple whitewashed and thatched building that served as their field home, office, lab – and whatever else that they needed it for. He passed by Teagan and Hayako, who had dropped off their equipment to be cleaned and then headed to the sheltered work table in the middle of the small island in order to contact the University, via radio, to set up a drop off appointment and then to complete their paperwork and reports for today's successful dive. He continued past them and noticed that Oceana was already spraying down and cleaning up the diving equipment and was putting it all neatly away in the equipment shed. It was a necessary chore that needed to be completed after every diving day, but it was quite tedious and arduous. However, they all they all took turns doing it in order to keep it fair. GG grimaced when he realized that it would be his turn tomorrow.

As GG neared the house, he was greeted by the island's other resident, Snorkel the yellow Labrador, who bounded up to him, jumped, and tried to place his paws on GG's chest. Snorkel could be a bit frisky, but was usually well behaved. Therefore, once he realized that GG's arms were full and unavailable for petting, he quickly jumped back down and contented himself with following GG into the house. After GG had deposited the samples on the table for Hayako to label later, he went to fetch Snorkel a treat as an apology for leaving him behind earlier that day. Normally, Snorkel was welcome on the boat when they were going out to Gatama Atoll. However, today he had stayed on the island because Jean-Eric thought they might possibly go to the mainland after the dive to have dinner and drinks at his friend's bar. It was popular with all of the local divers and fishermen and the _L &L_ team went there often. Unfortunately, the dive had taken longer than planned, so they decided just to come straight back to Nineball Island. They could go to the bar tomorrow night instead. However, that meant that somebody still needed to handle dinner for tonight. GG looked around and decided that he would start it since everyone else was still busy. It was technically Teagan's turn to cook, but he figured that she could just owe him one later and he set about finding something for the team to eat. Nobody on the island was a strict vegetarian, but they had all come to an unspoken agreement that they could not eat seafood. The team did quite a bit of conservation work, along with scientific and salvage operations, and they all found it difficult to even consider eating the beautiful creatures that they spent so much time with underwater. GG kept this in mind while he searched through the well-equipped fridge (everything on the small island ran on generator power – so they were able to have a few luxuries) and found what he was looking for. Perfect! They could have a casual dinner on the beach by cooking their food over their small bonfire, and maybe even relax with a few beers. It sounded like a wonderful way to end a successful day. Just as he finished pulling out all of the dinner supplies, Teagan and Hayako brought in their completed reports and dropped them into the filing cabinet that they kept next to the door solely for that purpose. Then they gathered up the supplies that GG had spread out all over the counter in order to carry them out to the beach, while he went ahead to light the fire with Snorkel at his heels. Oceana joined them there a few minutes later.

Meanwhile, Jean-Eric had finally finished his repairs and wiped the grease from his hands as he stepped off of the boat onto the dock. It would be getting dark soon and he realized that he was quite hungry. He seriously hoped that someone had arranged to fix dinner since their plans had not worked out. As he walked up the dock, he admired the tiny island that was his home and base of operations. It was beautiful, lined with palm trees that swayed in the breeze, and was so quiet and restful. He remembered the night that he had won it in a billiard game many years ago. Admittedly, he had had a bit too much to drink that night and impulsively had challenged an old diving buddy to a competition. He had quite foolishly placed the _Reef Seeker_ up against the island – winner takes all. Fortunately, the night ended with him still in possession of his precious boat and also having become the proud owner of the beautiful spot that he had immediately dubbed _Nineball Island_. He had used it just as a getaway spot for a few years, but after his wife died, he sold their small home on the mainland, and moved to the island full time. Oceana joined him there later after her parents passed away.

He walked into the house that he had built himself. It was small, but had always been adequate for his needs. There was a small galley style kitchen and a basic bathroom (with all of the water coming from the cisterns behind the house). There was also a common room with a couch and a table for eating or working. The two tiny bedrooms were open to the common room and were basically dorm style with a set of bunk beds in one room and two single beds in the other. Since the team members traveled a lot (sometimes together and sometimes separately) doing contract work and they sometimes had visitors (for whatever reason), sleeping arrangements on the island were very flexible and really depended on who was there, what they were doing, and what time it was. It was all very casual and comfortable and reflected the relationship of the team members themselves. There wasn't a lot of privacy on the small island anyway, so that didn't really seem to matter. The team members fell asleep in whatever bed was available, on the couch, or even in the hammock and lounge chairs on the beach if the weather was nice. Jean-Eric was even known to sleep on the deck of the _Reef Seeker_ if he was up late with repairs... or sometimes for other reasons, as well. He flushed with embarrassment when he remembered how concerned Teagan had been the first time she had found him out there the next morning. He had tried to laugh it off, not wanting to admit that the only reason he went back out to his boat that night was because he had stayed up late with paperwork after everyone else was already asleep. By the time he was finished with it and more than ready for sleep himself, he had realized the only available bed was the top bunk of the set in which she was already sleeping (Oceana and Hayako had already claimed the two singles and GG was snoring on the couch). He had not wanted to wake her while trying to climb up into it since she was obviously exhausted from the multiple salvage dives she had led throughout the day and which had caused her to fall asleep immediately after dinner. Therefore, he had just stood there in the doorway for a few minutes gazing at her with a mixture of longing and pride. He had fought off the completely inappropriate urge to crawl into the narrow bed with her by grabbing a spare blanket and heading out for the _Reef Seeker_. That was where she discovered him the next morning when she went out to the end of the dock in order to watch the sunrise. She hadn't acted like she really believed his mumbled explanation, but thankfully did not question it too much. She had surprised him, though, by insisting that he stay and watch the sunrise with her. They sat on the end of the dock, watching the sun climb up from the watery horizon, and she had laid her head on his shoulder. Then they walked back to the house together in order to prepare breakfast for the team. Somehow, his uncomfortable night had turned into a very pleasant morning.

Jean-Eric's attention snapped back to the present when he realized that nobody was in the house. He heard all of their voices coming from the side beach and realized that it must be time to eat. When he arrived, he found his team was already sprawled out on towels and blankets around the little fire. He smiled when he realized that they had saved him a spot between Oceana and Teagan. Dinner turned out to be the usual simple and cheerful affair. They roasted bits of meat, bread, and fruit over the fire and chatted about whatever came to their mind while sipping their beers and sodas. Afterwards, Jean-Eric just sat back and watched his team again. His eyes passed with amusement over GG who had Hayako and Oceana (with a snoring Snorkel draped over her legs) laughing over his impression of a randy sea lion. Then his eyes lit up when he looked over at Teagan. She had just leaned back on her elbows and was watching the fire with a slight smile gracing her lips. She looked so beautiful and peaceful there in the flickering light and all he could feel was a quiet joy in his heart. She would probably never be more than his friend and colleague, but he would be okay with that if it meant that he could continue to experience moments like these. At this moment, in this place and time, surrounded by the ocean, the home and business that he had built from scratch, and the companionship of his little mismatched family – he realized that Nineball Island was definitely his little slice of heaven. He could and would be quite content with that.


	3. A Hopeless Holding Pattern

After dinner, while the rest of the team played cards in the house, Teagan sat on the end of the dock and gazed out at the horizon while watching the moonlight shimmer over the surface of the calm water. It was her favorite place to come and think and she wasn't surprised when her thoughts quickly turned towards Jean-Eric. She sighed as she remembered sitting in that exact same spot with him that first morning that she had found him sleeping on his boat.

As much as she liked and respected the man, she did not understand why things seemed so unnecessarily complicated between them. Sometimes she would catch him looking at her in such a tender and thoughtful way, that it would steal her breath. Then he would ruin it all by becoming distant and finding an excuse to separate and bury himself in work. Usually that turned out to be repairs on the _Reef Seeker_ – whether she needed them or not. Worst of all, he didn't seem to act that way around any of the other team members – just her.

She shook her head in frustration. She knew that he liked her personally, respected her work and skills, and was proud of her accomplishments because he had told her as much – she even suspected that he felt much more for her than he let on. What they had was definitely more than a boss and employee relationship and it even felt like more than just being friends. She just didn't know why he acted like he couldn't be open and free with her – almost as if he didn't trust himself not to say or do the wrong thing. The real problem was that she wanted him to do exactly that - the not-so-wrong thing – and not hold himself in contempt just because he thought that he was too old for her. She thought deep down inside that the age difference was what bothered him the most and that was why he was holding back from her. It was a non-issue for her, though.

She had wanted him from the first day they met – when he had interviewed her and basically offered her the job before she had ever even gotten off of the boat. She had been drawn to his dark eyes, quick smile, and his strong, intelligent, and experienced face. She had also loved that way that he spoke so passionately (in that sexy French accent of his) about the sea and the work that they did at _L &L_. From what she could tell, he was in great shape, and she hadn't even known how much older he was until Oceana casually mentioned it later. She was temporarily shocked to find out that he was actually 57, but practically forgot all about it after spending some more time with him. Things like that just didn't seem to matter when they worked together, laughed together, and lived together as well as they did. Teagan couldn't help but think wistfully of all the other "things" that they could do so well together, if Jean-Eric would only just let go of the doubts that he had. She knew that she wasn't being very bold and forward herself, just because she wasn't that kind of person, and she didn't want to scare him off. However, she did try to let him know that she was interested.

She made no secret of the fact that she did not want any of the male clients who had expressed an interest in her – just in case that was why he was holding back. She also made a point of trying to be near him as much as possible – in the house, on the boat, around the fire, etc, and he always seemed pleased to be close to her. She fixed his favorite meals when it was her night to cook and he always seemed to be appreciative. She touched him casually whenever she could – a shoulder bump here, a hand graze there, a celebratory hug, even a "let me get that bit of mustard off your cheek" gesture – and she could tell that he enjoyed her touch. However, she was always disappointed when he made no attempt to prolong their contact, or to return it either. She was frustrated because she couldn't confront him directly about it – he was way too skittish for that – but she didn't know any other way to make her case. She didn't want to give up, though. She would have to find a way. It just seemed for now that they were stuck in a hopeless holding pattern.


End file.
